


Over My Head

by Cadburytrooper96



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Adopted Children, Childhood Sexual Abuse, Childhood Trauma, Crying, F/M, Father-Son Relationship, Heavy Drinking, In fact they all need hugs, M/M, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Pepper Potts, Protective Stephen Strange, Protective Tony Stark, so much crying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-27
Updated: 2019-03-27
Packaged: 2019-12-18 16:42:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18253814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cadburytrooper96/pseuds/Cadburytrooper96
Summary: Peter's drinking reveals a horrible secret.





	Over My Head

Stephen gave a tired sigh as he came out of the lab. He’d seen and faced a lot of things as a surgeon and as Sorcerer Supreme but nothing had been able to shake him like this. Tony and Pepper stood at his arrival, each with concerned faces. 

“I had to intubate him but he’ll be fine.” He said and Tony let out a shaky breath. He and Pepper exchanged a look and Pepper placed a consoling hand on his shoulder. 

“Hey, Peter’s safe. He’s okay.” She said slowly but he shrugged her hand off.

“He’s not fucking okay, Pep.” Tony spat out. “The kid just had to have a breathing tube shoved in his mouth, he drank enough to kill two adults, he’s not okay!” His voice ended on a hysterical note and both Stephen and Pepper lead him into a chair. 

“He’s going to be alright, love.” Stephen said gently. “He’s got a good support system here, he has us. He’ll be fine.” 

“Whatever is going on, we’ll handle it together.” Pepper continued. Tony looked less frantic at their words but Stephen could practically hear the self-loathing thoughts running through his mind. 

“Tony, it’s not you.” 

“It is, it’s something I would’ve done and god knows I’m not a model for fucking stability, I don’t see who else he would’ve picked this up from.” Tony said. What hurt the most was that he didn't say so with anger or with spite, he said it like it was a matter of fact. Like he’d said so to himself so many times, he believed it to be true. 

“You keep forgetting who you’re dating, sweetheart.” Pepper said in an amused tone. “Stephen was a mess before Kamar Taj-”

“Excuse you.”

“-and I’m not so squeaky clean either so he could’ve picked it up anywhere.” She finished. “Look we’re a team, right? We’ll handle it. He’s going to be fine.” Tony’s eyes darted between the two. He didn’t look any less concerned but some of the tension in his shoulders had gone and that was more than enough.

* * *

 

“Hey.”

Stephen jolted awake at the sound of Peter’s voice. He decided to take first watch seeing as he was the only one with a medical degree that Tony and Pepper trusted and the exhaustion of the day had caught up with him. He opened his eyes to see Peter slowly pulling himself up from the bed. He had pulled the breathing tube from his mouth and was trying to sit up.

Peter winced as he swallowed and Stephen pointed at the glass of water next to him. He gingerly took a sip of it before turning his attention back to Stephen. “Guess I really overdid it, huh?” He asked, his voice hoarse and his smile weak. Stephen raised a brow and Peter sighed. 

“Look, I had one too many but I’m fine now so it’s okay.” He said and Stephen gave him his best-unimpressed look.

“Look, Peter, I’ve known you for three years and in all that time, the most I’ve seen you drink is two beers and a couple of  jello  shots.” Stephen said  sternly . “I’m not forcing you to tell me what’s going on, you don’t have to but please don’t pretend you’re okay. No matter what it is, no matter what’s going on, we’re here for you.”

Peter’s bottom lip began to quiver at his words and Stephen was on his feet in an instant. “Do you want me to get Tony or Pepper?” He asked and Peter frantically shook his head. 

“No, please don’t.” He said through a sob. Tears were streaming down his face at this point and Peter’s shoulders shook with the intensity of his sobs. He’d never been a father to Peter, that was all Tony but seeing the teenager break down in front of him was enough to spark some sort of fatherly instincts in him. 

Stephen sat next to Peter and awkwardly put his arms around him. Peter immediately leaned into his touch and Stephen held him as he cried. “I don’t know what’s going on but you don’t have to be alone through it. We’re here for you.”

“I-I d-don't  wa -want t-to cause a p-problem.”

Stephen frowned at his words. “Peter, whatever it is, it’s a problem if it’s causing you this much pain.” He replied and Peter only sobbed harder. Stephen held him till his sobs had dried to hiccups and Peter was able to speak in full sentences. The duo sat in silence before Peter spoke up again. 

“Do I count as your patient right now?” He asked, his voice barely above a whisper. 

“If you want to, then yes.” 

“ So  if I told you something, it could stay between us?” Peter’s head was still tucked into his side and even though Stephen couldn’t see his face, he could tell that whatever was bothering him was enough to terrify him. 

“If it’s not a threat to you or others, then yes.” Stephen replied. Peter remained silent for a few more seconds before speaking.

“You know the new intern?” He asked. Stephen frowned. This wasn’t where he saw the conversation going but he was willing to play along.

“Skip? Yeah, what about him?” He asked. Peter flinched at the sound of Skip’s name and Stephen felt his stomach turn. He didn’t like where this was going.

“I, um, I...” Peter swallowed thickly and reached for the glass of water. Stephen patiently waited for him to continue. He took another sip of it before placing it down and snuggling into Stephen’s side. Peter took in a deep breath. “He used to b-babysit me. Aunt May had a lot of shifts and Uncle Ben couldn’t always watch me so he used to babysit.” 

He could feel Peter begin to tense up and he had a feeling he knew where this was going. “Peter, I’m going to ask you some questions and all you have to do is nod, okay? No matter what happens, I’m here for you and I support you. There’s nothing you could say that would make me hate you. Okay?” Peter nodded and it was Stephen’s turn to swallow. 

“Did Skip hurt you while he babysat?”

A pause and then a nod. 

“Was he abusive?”

Another quick nod.

“Did he ever hit you?”

Silence.

“Did he neglect you?”

More silence.  _ Fuck. _  He could feel his hands start to shake more than usual and he drew in a deep breath.

“Did he ever touch you?”

Silence and then a nod. Stephen’s heart sank. He could feel bile rise in his throat and he fought through it. If they were going to get through this, he needed to be  Dr.  Strange right now not Stephen.

“More than once?”

Another nod.

“Peter, did he rape you?”

Silence and then a nod. 

“Y-You can’t tell dad, he’ll kill him.” Peter said tearfully, finally looking up at him. He thought he was prepared to divorce himself from his feelings but as Stephen looked into Peter’s brown eyes, all he felt was rage. “Y-You promised, you said if it didn’t hurt me it was okay.” Peter said frantically. 

Stephen forced himself to push through the anger and remain calm. “Peter, we found you in a pool of your own vomit. I had to insert a breathing tube, you can’t tell me that this situation isn’t hurting you.” He said slowly. He could see tears gathering in Peter’s eyes and he pulled him closer.

“No matter what you choose, your dad, Pep and I would follow but you need to stop holding it in.” He said, his hands brushing through the teen’s hair. “He works for Stark Industries now, so we have the upper hand. Let us help you.”  

Silence

Silence

And then a small nod.

* * *

 

Pepper flung her arms around Peter in a hug. “God, baby, you scared us so much. Are you okay?” She said as planted several kisses on his face. Peter went rigid under her affection and Pepper pulled back. 

“Baby? Pete r ?” 

Peter’s eyes began to well up and Pepper frowned. “Stephen?” She said, turning to her lover. He and Peter exchanged a look and Peter gave a subtle nod. 

“Pepper, you want to take a seat?” He asked and she glared at him. 

“What the fuck is going on?” She replied and Stephen sighed. 

“You know the new intern? Skip?” He asked, ignoring the way Peter flinched at the sound of his name. 

“Yeah?” 

“He used to babysit Peter.” 

Pepper looked at him in confusion before looking back at Peter. He could see her connecting the dots in her mind and her skin was already beginning to take on an orange glow. “You can’t hurt him.” Peter said shakily. “Y-You told Dad that the company’s still taking a hit from him f-fighting with S-Steve and that w-we don’t need bad publicity.”

“It’s not bad publicity if he goes missing.” Pepper shot back and Stephen placed a hand on her shoulder. 

“Easy, Pep. It’s all about Peter right now, nothing else.” He said gentl y . He could feel the heat radiating off her but she wasn’t burning through anything so he counted that as a good sign. She looked him in the eye before nodding. 

“Okay. Okay.” Pepper murmured to herself.  ”Is. ..Can I put my arms around you? Is that okay?” She said to Peter and he nodded. She walked over to him and carefully put her arms around him. “You’re so brave, baby. So, so brave, thank you for telling us.” She said as she hugged him close. 

“ Does MJ know? ” Stephen  asked  and  Peter nodded. “Do you want her here? You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“No, I...” Peter swallowed thickly and Pepper gave him a reassuring squeeze. “Having her here would be good. ” Pepper nodded in response. 

“Happy can pick her up but we won’t leave till she comes.” She said. Peter looked up at her with worried eyes. 

“L-Leave?” He stuttered. Pepper looked down at him in confusion before looking to Stephen.

“Well...someone has to tell your dad and I think he’ll take it better from us.” She said slowly. Peter’s hands began to quiver and  Stephen  could tell he was on the edge of freaking out. 

“Pep-” He began but she stopped him with a look.

“I can’t lie to him.  ** We **  can’t lie to him, it’s not a question of staying silent.” Pepper said to Stephen. “You know him, if he feels like we’re not telling the truth, he’ll find out and it’ll be worse.”

“Pepper, it’s not about what Tony wants, it’s what Peter wants.” Stephen snapped. Pepper’s face flushed in embarrassment and she turned her attention back to the anxious boy in her arms. 

“I’m sorry, baby, Stephen’s right. What do you want?” She asked  gently.  Peter’s gaze darted from hers to Stephen’s.

“I just don’t want it to be a big deal. Dad’s going to kill him, I know he will and he won’t care and the company’s going to suffer and I don’t want to be a p-problem.” Peter said shakily. His fingers toyed with the hem of his shirt and his attention was focused on his lap.

“Is there any other reason you don’t want to tell your dad?” Stephen asked and Peter tensed at his words. “Pete r , you know he’s not going to think any different about you. He loves you, we all do. It’s not the same but Tony knows how it feels to have your body autonomy taken away. He won’t think lesser of you, I promise.”

A tear snaked down Peter’s cheek and Pepper carefully brushed it away. “Stephen’s right. Tony loves you no matter what.” A few more tears slipped down his cheeks and Pepper gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “Stephen and I have the override codes for your Dad’s suits so we can stop him from running out and hunting the bastard down if we have to.”

Peter nodded slowly, his movements as though he was waking up from a trance. “Okay.” He replied hoarsely. “But I don’t...I don’t want to be there. When he finds out.” His tone suggested he didn’t believe Tony would think the same of him but that was for Tony to fix, there wasn’t much they could do about it.  Peter leaned into her touch and Pepper ran her fingers through his hair. She didn't want to think of Tony's rage or the things that monster did to her boy, all she wanted to do was hold him.

* * *

 

“Ready to tell me what the fuck is going on?” Tony asked as Stephen closed the door behind him. MJ had arrived and was taking care of Peter for the meantime. Friday was closely monitoring him and she would alert them if anything went wrong. Tony had been waiting for them in their bedroom and they didn’t doubt he would have a lot of questions. 

Stephen and Pepper exchanged another look before Pepper climbed on to the bed. She gestured for Tony to join her and he looked at her suspiciously before joining her. Stephen slid in next to him and he and Pepper wrapped their hands around him, comforting him but also keeping him in place if they needed to.

“Before we say anything, you need to promise that you’ll focus on what Peter wants, within reason.” Stephen started off and Pepper nodded. 

“He needs us right now and you’re allowed to be pissed but he comes first.” Pepper finished. 

“Well, that’s not ominous in any way.” Tony snapped but they could both hear the underlying tones of fear in his voice. They’d both agreed that ripping the band-aid off in one go was the best way to go about things so Pepper took in a deep breath before speaking.

“The new intern, Skip, used to babysit Peter.” She started off. Tony’s brow furrowed in confusion but he remained silent. “And during this time, he...well, he...he abused Peter.” Tony’s body tensed up.

“ Wha -What are we talking about here? He used to beat Peter?” Tony asked, his voice trembling. The duo remained quiet and Tony let out a pained gasp. “No, not my kid, not-not Peter.”

“I didn’t ask for details but Peter confirmed that Skip...raped him at some point.” Stephen said, forcing the words to come out of his mouth. Tony’s breath hitched at his words and Stephen pressed closer to him. 

“He’s been...He’s been working here for two months.” Tony said faintly “God, he’s...he’s been around Peter and I let that happen-”

“You didn’t know, we didn’t know.” Pepper cut in smoothly. 

“I should’ve known, I...” Tony sat up and Pepper shot Stephen a worried look. “Friday, lock in that fucker’s address.”

“Tony, remember what you promised.” Pepper said hurriedly as she tried to keep him seated. “That isn’t what Peter wants, you promised.” Tony tried to push her away but Stephen tightened his hold on him. The force of it made his fingers spasm with pain but it was necessary.

“Tony, I don’t want to do this but I will use those override codes if I have to.” He said firmly. “I know how you feel, I want to tear him apart too but that’s not what Peter needs right now.”

“He’ll get what’s coming to him, sweetheart.” Pepper said fiercely. “He hurt our baby and he will  ** pay **  but Peter needs us right now.” Tony let out a shuddering breath and slumped back into the bed. They didn’t have to look at him to know he was crying, they’d struggled with holding back their emotions as well. 

“I know, I know.” Stephen said soothingly as Tony collapsed into their arms. 

“Why? Why would anyone-” Tony’s voice cut off with a sob and Pepper felt her eyes well up. She hadn't been able to cry in front of Peter but seeing Tony fall apart was enough to break her apart as well. The trio held each other, each of them working through their emotions in the comfort of the other. 

“Can I. ..Does  he want to see me?” Tony asked after they’d all gotten a hold on themselves. Pepper nodded. 

“He’s scared you’ll think less of  him,  we told him you would never-” Pepper hastily added as hurt flashed across Tony’s face. “- but I think he needs to hear it from you.” Tony nodded. 

“Y-Yeah, I can do that. God, how did we not see this?” He asked, his eyes welling up again. 

“You couldn’t have  know .” Stephen replied gently. “If anything, I should have noticed, I know what the signs look like.” In hindsight, everything made sense. When Tony introduced Skip to Peter, the teen had gone pale before acting as though nothing was wrong. Tony had noticed but he’d said nothing was wrong.

Then came the recklessness. Peter had always been passionate about his duties as Spiderman but the past few weeks had seen him ignoring orders, acting out of the field, even going so far as disobeying Tony when he’d been told to sit it out. He’d become withdrawn and irritable, a fact that hadn’t gone unnoticed by the rest of the family. 

He and Harley had gotten into a screaming match before they visited Pepper’s mom and he’d been a bit of an asshole to everyone. They’d assumed it was a thing at school or with MJ, even a kid as sunny as Peter had to have issues but they’d never thought to consider this.

“Hey, don’t do that.” Tony said, looking up at his boyfriend. “You’ve been here for Peter and the fact that he could tell you and not us speaks volumes.”

"Don't be like that." Stephen said gently, his trembling fingers reaching over to wipe away his lover's tears. "You know he loves and trusts you. We just have to be here for him, love." Tony pushed away his thoughts of self-doubt and nodded. Stephen was right. All that mattered right now was his son. Everything else took second place.

* * *

 

“How are you holding up?” 

Peter looked up at his girlfriend’s voice. MJ was sitting next to him, her hand next to his but not touching. She looked drained and Peter felt a wave of self - loathing wash over him. If only he’d just kept it to two beers like he usually did, no one would know and he wouldn’t be dragging his loved ones through this mess. 

“I’m so sorry.” He blurted out and Michelle gave him a look. 

“Peter, don’t you dare apologize for this.” She said firmly. “You did a good thing by telling them, honestly I’m kind of glad you did instead of coming to me cause I’m sure I would’ve beaten him to death with a crowbar.”

Despite the situation, Peter managed a weak smile. “I’m not talking about that. I know I’ve been a shitty boyfriend these past few weeks.” He’d blown her off on more than one occasion and had basically been an unavailable mess since Skip started working for Stark Industries.

“It’s alright, that’s behind us now.” She replied. “I’m just glad you trust me enough to be here for you.” 

“I trust you with everything, Michelle.” He said earnestly. He couldn’t  deal  with the thought of her thinking he didn’t. 

“I know, babe. I know.” Michelle replied reassuringly. The lab door slid open and Peter immediately grasped her hand in his. Tony, Pepper, and Stephen walked in and Peter’s  heart  was in his throat. They all had swollen eyes and Peter’s heart clenched with the thought that they had cried over him. 

“Can I give you a hug? It’s okay if not.” Tony asked hesitantly and the fact that his own dad had to ask to do something so basic only intensified the self - loathing. He wanted to say no, to say that he didn’t need to be coddled and that he was fine but he was so fucking tired. He gave a small nod and Tony carefully wrapped his arms around him. 

“Thank you so much for telling me.” Tony murmured in his ear as he pulled him close. “You are so brave and I am so fucking proud to call you my kid. Nothing’s going to change that.” Peter thought he was all cried out but his father’s words were enough to inspire a fresh bout of tears. 

“I-I’m s-so sorry.” He sobbed and Tony held him closer. 

“There’s nothing to be sorry for, absolutely nothing.” Tony said fiercely. “You did nothing wrong, Pete. He hurt you and you didn’t deserve it.”

“B-But you have to f-fire him and it could cause a scandal.” Peter replied thickly. Tony pulled back and held  Peter’s  face in his hands. 

“Hey, look at me.” He said gently and Peter blinked past his tears. Tony was looking down at him and he’d never felt so undeserving of anyone’s love till right now. “I would sell the company to fucking Hammer if it meant keeping you safe. I barely work there anyway .”

“It’s true.” Pepper said with a playful glare towards Tony and Peter managed a small laugh. They descended into silence before he spoke up again.

“D-Do you  wa -want to know?” Peter said haltingly. He didn’t want  to,  god he didn’t want to but he might as well get it over with right now when he was already vulnerable. To his surprise, everyone shook their head. 

“You don’t have to tell us anything if you don’t want to.” Stephen said tenderly. “I will ask one question though.” Peter nodded and Stephen took in a deep breath. 

“Did May know?” He asked quietly. Peter frantically shook his head. 

“I never told her. S-She knew something was wrong but I c-couldn’t.” He said, his breath hitching as he was taken back nearly ten years ago. “He-He said if I told it w-would be a problem and May and Ben would have to get lawyers and I-I'd be a burden and th-they would hate me.” 

“Oh God.” Pepper said faintly, her skin beginning to glow. “Baby, is that why you didn’t tell us? Because you thought you would be a burden?” Peter gave a shaky nod and Tony slowly wrapped his arms around their son.

“Peter, that is not and will never be true.” Pepper said as she crouched in front of the teen. “We all love you. All of us.” She gently wiped the tears streaking down the teen's cheeks. 

“She’s right, Petey.” MJ said as she gave his hand a squeeze. Her eyes were glossy with unshed tears but she held them back for his sake. “We love you so much. We just want you to be happy and safe.” Tony nodded in agreement.

“As much as I hate to agree, MJ’s right.” He said, ignoring her glare. “I’m going to have to fire him but if you don’t want it to leave this room, it won’t.” Peter stiffened at his father’s words. 

“Peter, I know you don’t want to but kids come here often.” Pepper said, noting his look of fear. “If word gets out about him, we’re going to catch  heat  for hiring him.” 

“And I don’t want my money going into the account of a  pedophile .” Tony continued. Peter felt like he was going to be sick. All this time, he’d never even considered the fact that Skip could have gone for other children. He’d been so wrapped up in himself, he’d never even thought about Skip’s other victims. 

“I-I let him work here.” Peter whispered. “I knew the kind of person he was and I watched him in the lab talking to other children.” He could hear Stephen say something but he sounded like he was talking through a tunnel and his vision was beginning to blur. The last thing he heard before he passed out was his girlfriend’s scream.

* * *

 

MJ screamed as her boyfriend suddenly pitched forward. If not for Tony’s arms around him, he would’ve hit the ground. 

“Stephen!” Tony yelled but his partner was already supporting him and helping him back on the bed. 

“Friday?” He asked, his voice stable even though his eyes were wide with panic. 

“I reckon he’s just dehydrated and overwhelmed, boss.” Friday replied, running diagnostics and although he knew Friday wasn’t wrong, Stephen did his own checks. 

“We’ve got saline solution. I can start reviewing that fucker’s contract and see if we can terminate him without any legal consequences.” Pepper said flatly and Stephen went about setting up an IV. “And we have to call the kids. Harley’s going to hack into Friday again if he doesn’t hear from us.”

“Well, we can’t tell him.” Tony said tiredly. “Harley finds out, he’ll kill Skip himself and as much as I would love that, I’m not having him go to jail for that.”

“You might not need to.”

The trio turned to MJ. The curly haired girl was sitting at the foot of the bed, looking absolutely drained. With how often she was over, they tended to forget that she wasn’t superhuman and right now, she was looking every bit her nineteen years of age. 

“He used to drug Peter and I think he might have taken pictures. Or videos.” MJ said darkly. Stephen was pale and steam began to rise from Pepper’s body. “I’ve never told Peter that, I don’t think he could handle it. He couldn’t even tell me about it without being drunk off his ass, if I’m right it could break him.” Her voice cracked on the last word. 

Stephen was seriously beginning to consider dropping Skip off in one of the dark dimensions and leaving him there to die. He’d deserve it and it’s not like Wong would disagree, he loved Peter. Pepper had crossed over to where MJ sat and had pulled her into a hug, letting the girl sob into her chest.

“Friday?” Tony called weakly. 

“Already on it, boss. If he’s got anything on Peter, I’ll find it.” She said fiercely. 

* * *

 

Stephen curled into his partners, soothed by Pepper’s body heat. MJ was down with Peter and Friday had instructions to wake them up the minute Peter did but  somehow  he doubted any of them would get much sleep. 

They’d taken a bath together with Pepper basically turning it into a hot tub as she sobbed in their arms. The news had shocked them all and they were barely holding it together. 

“Thanks, Stephen.” Tony whispered and Stephen’s brows furrowed in confusion. 

“What for?” He asked.

“Taking care of Peter. Making sure he came first. Being an amazing father to him.” Pepper replied and Stephen stiffened. He wasn’t Peter’s dad, that was a position that belonged to Tony and he wasn’t going to rip it away from him.

“I’m not his father.” He mumbled and Tony rolled his eyes.

“It’s not a  one-man  position, you know. Besides, he opened up to you, he told you what was going on not any of us.” He said.

“Because I’m a doctor.” Stephen protested and Pepper shook her head.

“You’ve seen him when he’s hurt. Peter doesn’t tell doctors anything. He confided in you because he trusted you.” She said. “He told us because he trusted that you would honor his wishes which you have. Sure you’re not on the same level with Tony yet but to be honest, that’s unattainable and we should all stop trying.”

The trio chuckled softly at her words and Tony snuggled closer into him. “I know you don’t think so and that’s fine but you’re so much more than our boyfriend, Stephen.” He whispered. “You’re our partner, in every sense of the word. Especially when it comes to  ** our **  kids. I couldn’t think of a better father for them.”

That was high praise coming from the engineer and Stephen felt a warmth very different from Pepper’s power spread through him. Tony didn’t fuck around with the kids and he trusted very few near them.

“We’ll get through this. No matter what happens, we all have each other.” Stephen said encouragingly and he felt their grip on him tighten.

“I know I promised not to do anything but he will pay.” Pepper growled. “I’m tired of seeing the people I love hurt and I’m not going to let that piece of shit run free.” Her body was beginning to heat up again and Stephen winced. 

Pepper apologized but he waved it away. After the day they’d had, she deserved to lose a bit of control. No matter what happened, they all had each other and they’d pull through together. 

“He won’t get away with it, love. I promise.” Stephen said, his grip on them tightening as well. 

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted angst and a Stephen/ Tony/Pepper triad and I came up with this. Hope you like it!


End file.
